Posted by Tom Rippon on Thursday, February 9, 2012 ? Leave a Comment?
It?s been a busy week for iOS gaming ? we?ve seen some interesting releases from developers and publishers we are all familiar with, and some who are practically unknown. But it?s not about who you know, it?s about how good a game you can make. So here we are once again, looking into which games have made us smile, and which ? well, haven?t.
Food Fight (?2.49/$3.99, Playdek) Universal
You may remember having read our announcement of Food Fight?s release earlier this week. It?s fair to say that the folks over at Playdek put a lot of hard work into their card games ? the rules, the tactics, and the cards. Food Fight is no exception. With witty banter from the start, great character design and clever gameplay, Food Fight is probably one of the most engrossing card games available on iOS at this time. It?s huge, there are a lot of battlefields, all of them funny and engaging, and the characters are really what makes this game.
Food Fight allows you to play against AI, other people online, or a mixture of both.
The only shortcoming seems to be the fact that it is almost too well thought-out. I have not a bad word to say about the game, but I fear that more casual gamers will have trouble getting into it; learning the rules of engagement in Food Fight is difficult, even with the tutorial, and it requires an investment of time to get the hang of it. No doubt that once you can grasp the game and start winning, it?s very rewarding, but for first time players, it may take a while to pick up. If you?re willing to invest time as well as money, Food Fight is a great card game. If not, you might best be moving along. But you?ll be missing out.
Virtual City Playground (Free, G5) iPad
There?s something appealing about sim games. Like we?ve seen from titles such as Fantasy Town and Green Farm 2, a sim game needs to be addictive, simple, but most importantly, there has to be something about it to keep players coming back. Unfortunately, Virtual City Playground doesn?t have many of these things. In fact, I?m pretty sure it has none of them.
?A new city, a new challenge.? Well, it?s certainly that. Virtual City Playground gives players almost too much to do. The player is responsible for literally everything imaginable. Including collecting the garbage from every single building. Whereas most sim games give players the simple satisfaction of letting the game do the hard work, VCP made me feel like I was working. Like I had all these things I had to do and not nearly enough time to do them. There are too many different statistics and factors to take in; not only coins, but energy that can stifle your productivity, the general appeal of your town, and everything in between. It?s not the kind of game you can take a break from for a day, then come back to and see that everything is still doing just about okay. It?s a strain to stay on top if it all, and that?s not what I want from a sim game. VCP has nothing unique, it?s over-complicated, and I will not be visiting my city ever again. Which is unfortunate, because before I started playing, I ironically named it Utopia.
Fathead (?0.69/$0.99, Resolve Digital) Universal
There are some really great motorbike games out there, in which you traverse dangerous settings, trying to keep your balance as you make your way to the end of a seemingly impossible track. Fathead, in which you control a small stunt-rider with a larger-than-usual head, is not one of these brilliant games. It?s actually quite upsetting.
Fathead could have done so much more with the motorbike niche. Instead, it didn't even live up to what so many others are already offering.
By accelerating using your finger, you force Fathead-man to speed along, while an annoying motorcycle sound effect (which actually just sounds like somebody blowing a raspberry right in your ear) accompanies your every movement. However, there is no way to balance yourself properly, like in Bike Baron, one of the more successful titles in the motorbike genre. The landscapes are boring and yet challenging due to the poor controls, and to be perfectly honest, Fathead, whilst having a cool name and a mildly amusing character design, falls flat of its high-speed cousins.
Spice Invaders (Free, Chillingo) Universal
You?ve got to give credit where credit is due. Especially to Chillingo. It seems like we can?t go a single week, let alone a single Hot List, without seeing another entry from them. And most of the time their games are impressive. However, Spice Invaders doesn?t live up to their normally stellar standards.
Don?t get me wrong, it?s an enjoyable game to play. In a torn-apart version of Earth, space pirates have taken over, and in many tower-defense kind of levels, you have to hold off the remaining humans who want their planet back. The design of each and every level is widely varied and interesting, and there?s a lot of good humour and cool ways to defend your alien base. However, it just seems all too familiar. I love tower defense games as much as the next guy, and honestly, I can?t imagine getting bored of them, but I can imagine myself getting bored of Chillingo?s decision not to move away from predictable releases. Tower defense, as fun as it is, is predictable. I want to see a game from Chillingo that is so out of control that it makes me gasp with sheer amazement and terror. Spice Invaders doesn?t do that. Maybe I?m expecting too much ? it?s a good game, maybe even great. It?s got a lot going for it, but originality is not one of those things. For free, I dare say you can?t go wrong, but if you?re not easily impressed, maybe it?s best you sit this one out.
Defense Zone HD (?1.99/$2.99, Artem Kotov) iPad
Okay, maybe I was a bit mean about Chillingo?s choice to release yet another tower defense game, because here comes another one that I?ve actually really enjoyed. Defense Zone, although it takes itself more seriously, and has a kind of more grown-up feel to it, is a really interesting tower defense game. It treats you like a grown-up, and when I?m gaming, I appreciate that.
When you dive right into the first level, you?re not given any kind of tutorial or pointers. Let?s face it, if this is your first interaction with the genre, you almost deserve to lose. But where the game really shines is how easy to follow and pick up it is. Initially I was concerned about the lack of tutorial ? although I know how to defend my base from waves of enemies, every game has a different interface or controls. Thankfully, and obviously deliberately, Defense Zone?s are very easy to grasp.
As you can see from the above trailer, the game?s graphics are not very intriguing ? they kind of feel like they were Photoshopped into the game just to give it some textures. But there are still a wide range of battlefields, and the gameplay itself is good enough, despite belonging to an already thriving and almost overdone genre, that you are able to overlook the appearance. Despite the price tag that is slightly steeper than most iOS games, Defense Zone is worth the money, and worth your time.
Check back next Thursday to see more of the best and worst iOS games of the week.
Filed under iOS Game News, iOS Game Reviews, iOS Games, Video Game News ? Tagged with artem kotov, chillingo, defense zone, fathead, food fight, g5, gaming, iOS, ipad, iphone, playdek, resolve digital, spice invaders, virtual city playground
Source: http://bnbgaming.com/2012/02/09/ios-hot-list-9212/
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